Archives for December 2009

Unfortunately many bars and restaurants are closed on New Year’s Day, to recover and clean up from the previous night’s party. Most of the bars that are open have TVs and thus will be showing football all day. So yeah, there’s the Rose Bowl; I figure everyone who wants to watch it already has it planned out, whether at home, at a friend’s, or at a bar.

So what about those of us not particularly fond of American football?

Please leave a comment if you know of a local place that’s open for business on New Year’s Day – I’ll add them to the list below:

Prost! (4237 N Mississippi) opens at noon, serving up Bloodies and bier (according to the Facebook page). They’re showing the football game too, though they only have one TV above the bar, so it might not be too imposing.

And many of the places that were open on Christmas day are also open on New Year’s Day (give them a call first though to make sure!).

New Year’s Eve is not one of my favorite holidays. For one thing, I’m usually asleep by the time 12:00 rolls around, and thus I am rudely awaken by the neighbors’ fireworks and other noisy antics. For another thing, I don’t like to be on the roads that evening because 90% of the cars out there are driven by either cops or drunks.

Wow, it was quite a surprise to arrive home this evening on a flight from sunny and warm Long Beach, California to find that Portland had thrown out the fluffy white welcome mat. Mile73‘s Heather and I spent Xmas with her lovely and amusing family in Los Angeles. We’d glanced at the Portland forecasts, and had no inkling that we would be arriving home to Snowpocalypse 2.*

The Red Line from the airport was the most crowded I have ever seen it, but Heather and I staked a claim to a spot by the door and a handhold on the overhead bar. There were some TriMet bad weather schedule shenanigans at the Rose Garden, but we finally, after a surprisingly short time, made our way home to find a kitty starved for attention and a 55 degree apartment.

Anyway, I apologize for the lack of posting the past few days, and am pleased to inform you all that Dave Knows Portland is returning to a normal programming schedule as of right now.

*Just a little over a year ago we had some pretty nasty weather too, as you may recall. You may recall from last winter the gem below from Mike Vogel:

PGE Park’s field will slide toward home plate, snug in the crook of the stadium’s grandstand. A larger video screen will appear against the Multnomah Athletic Club, along with a standing-room/stage area. Most notably, covered seats and a club level will mushroom from the stadium’s nearly empty east side, ushering scarf-snapping fans to within a throw-in of the sideline. [More]

During a regular Timbers offseason, there can be a lack of news to cover about the team when the colder weather appears. However, this season isn’t like most off seasons because of two situations that affect the lads: the USL/NASL rift and the planning for MLS to start in 2011. Both situations have significant impact to the Timbers but the team continues to press forward as best they can. [More]

Congratulations on becoming a part of Major League Soccer. Those of us who followed your efforts to join the league have been impressed by your organization and the spirit from your loyal supporters during the entire process. You long standing rivalry with the Seattle Sounders will only go to further enrich MLS and help build another layer of tradition in the league. There is no question that your inclusion in MLS will be a positive step forward for soccer in the United States.

And here’s the riveting account of how she was able to capture the moment (via Twitter):

i only saw it because i was out in front of sassys stumbling, it was awesome, i was all sweeeeet! look dude!

Blog reader Maureen Oliver sent in a photo this morning, taken on Saturday. As you can see the bus appears to be a 75 (you can see the 39th and Powell Safeway to the left, and the check cashing place that used to be a Duncan Donuts on the right).

Thanks Maureen!

On Christmas day my old pal Hollie sent me the photo below. It’s a #12 near the Barbur transit center: